French military

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Lawyer: Pilot Was Strapped to Target in Terrifying Hazing

French fighter pilot had a hood over his head as munitions were dropped, lawyer says

(Newser) - A French fighter pilot says that when he arrived at a new unit, colleagues hazed him by putting a hood over his head, throwing him in the back of a pickup truck, driving around 30 minutes away, and attaching him to a pole. He says that when he heard the...

French Military Suffers Worst Loss of Life in Decades

Helicopter collision killed 13 troops in Mali

(Newser) - A midair collision between two helicopters has killed 13 French soldiers fighting against Islamic extremists in Mali, French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday. Macron expressed "deep sadness" at the news of the Monday evening crash, which took place during a combat operation, the AP reports. In a written statement,...

France Deploys 10K Troops to Guard 'Sensitive Sites'

Almost 5K cops headed to nation's Jewish schools, institutions

(Newser) - A day after the biggest rally in its history , France is deploying thousands of police and troops to the nation's 717 Jewish schools and other "sensitive sites" throughout the country, the New York Times reports. Citing "the first mobilization on this scale on our territory," defense...

French, Mali Forces Re-Take City After Rebel Canoe Raid

Analysts warn this could be start of guerrilla campaign

(Newser) - It may be too soon to call Mali "mission accomplie," after Islamic rebels renewed fighting in the eastern city of Gao last night, reports the Christian Science Monitor . About a dozen rebels sneaked across the Niger River over the weekend in canoes, placing snipers on buildings to fire...

French Forces Reach Timbuktu
 French Forces Reach Timbuktu 
Jan 28, 2013 12:03 AM CST

French Forces Reach Timbuktu

Islamists on the retreat in northern Mali

(Newser) - Ground forces backed by French paratroopers and helicopters took control of the airport and roads leading to the fabled desert town of Timbuktu in an overnight operation, a French military official says. The move marked the latest inroad by the two-week-old French mission to oust radical Islamists from the northern...

US on Training Mali Troops: We Made Mistakes

Gen Ham admits not enough focus on 'values, ethics, ethos'

(Newser) - A senior American official has admitted the United States made mistakes in its training of the country's troops, reports the BBC . Gen. Carter Ham of United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) said that training had focused on tactics and "technical matters," at the expense of teaching recruits about...

As African Coalition Enters Mali, Rebels Splinter

Branch of al-Qaeda-linked group calls for peace talks

(Newser) - Less than two weeks after France started airstrikes in rebel-held Mali , and a day after thousands of African coalition troops began to enter the country, one rebel faction has broken away from Islamic militants and called for peace talks, reports the AP . One wing of al-Qaeda-linked Ansar Dine, calling itself...

2 French Troops Shot Dead on Street

Third critically injured

(Newser) - A gunman on a motorbike opened fire on three French paratroopers at a bank machine in southern France today, killing two and critically wounding one of them, officials said. It was the second such attack in a week targeting French soldiers in a public place. Earlier, the Defense Ministry had...

In Tripoli, There's Still Love for Gadhafi

Meanwhile, French warplane destroys Libyan plane

(Newser) - Despite Libyans’ revolt against their leader, many in the country, and Tripoli in particular, still fervently support Moammar Gadhafi, reports the Washington Post . The paper tells of "near round-the-clock displays of devotion" in the capital, with residents clad in Gadhafi green chanting while holding pictures of their leader. His...

France Ordered Troops Into Nuke Cloud

Troops used as guinea pigs during '60s nuclear tests

(Newser) - France used its own troops as guinea pigs during nuclear testing in the Sahara Desert in 1961, according to a newly declassified report. After one test, hundreds of conscripts were ordered to play war games within 700 yards of the spot where a nuclear bomb had just exploded to discover...

Obama Issues Orders for More Afghan Troops

Briefed military last night, will reveal number and other details tomorrow

(Newser) - After weeks of deliberation, President Obama has settled on a new strategy for the war in Afghanistan and ordered the military to carry it out. The exact size of the troop escalation has not been announced, but sources put the number in the neighborhood of 30,000 more troops. The...

French Bullet Killed Somali Pirate Hostage

Man died in crossfire as troops stormed captive yacht in April

(Newser) - French forces who stormed a yacht captured by Somali pirates on April 10 also shot dead one of the five hostages on board, Radio France Internationale reports. Prosecutors had said last month that it was unclear who was responsible for the bullet that killed Florent Lemaçon, who was caught...

Crashed Subs Carried '1200 Hiroshimas'

Lawmakers demand answers after British, French subs collide under the Atlantic

(Newser) - British lawmakers are demanding to know how the flagships of the British and French nuclear submarine fleets—each carrying missiles with enough power for 1,250 Hiroshima bombings—managed to collide earlier this month, the Independent reports. Defense sources say the crash was just incredibly bad luck, but experts are...

Sarkozy Renews Afghan Support
 Sarkozy Renews Afghan Support
Aug 20, 2008 7:10 AM CDT

Sarkozy Renews Afghan Support

Visits troops, meets with Karzai

(Newser) - Nicolas Sarkozy reaffirmed his support of the Afghan mission today, in the wake of a Taliban ambush that killed 10 French soldiers and wounded 21 others, the BBC reports. After meeting with Hamid Karzai, Sarkozy told troops to be proud of their “indispensable” work. “We're going to make...

Soldier Held as French Probe Display That Left 17 Injured

Live ammo substituted for blanks; officials say error, not premeditation, likely

(Newser) - French authorities are investigating a military demonstration gone terribly wrong yesterday, the AFP reports, in which 17 people were wounded when a soldier fired live rounds instead of blanks during a demonstration of hostage-situation techniques. The soldier has been detained, but has no history of psychological problems. "The theory...

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